How to Target Multiple Species Through the Ice

Waterfowl hunters go out looking to knock down mixed limits of diver and puddle ducks, trout anglers ply rivers for brook trout, browns, and rainbows, and small game hunters take their shotguns to the woods for a combo of rabbits, squirrels, and upland birds. Being able to pursue and harvest multiple game and fish species at the same time is part of the challenge of being in the outdoors, and it’s especially rewarding when you can do it with an ambitious method, such as fishing through the ice.

Targeting multiple species while ice fishing is a lot harder than it seems. With different fish being found at different depths and relying on different food sources, all beneath ice that you can’t see through, trying to catch multiple species in hardwater is a lot like trying to pat your head and rub your belly at the same time—it takes coordination. However, with the right planning and the right tackle, you’ll be well on your way to catching a mixed bag of fish through the ice.

Learn Your Water

Fishing on the right body of water is key to targeting multiple species. You’ll want to find a waterbody that has multiple gamefish species living in roughly the same type of habitat and depth. This can include species like perch and walleye or burbot and lake trout, which feed on the same forage in the same areas. However, it can also include species that have a prey/predator relationship, such as panfish and pike or trout and muskie.

Once you’ve identified a likely looking body of water with the fish species you’re after, you’re going to want to study it. Use a bathymetric map, a mapping app, and/or photos from websites like Google Earth to look over the area before you get your boots on the ice. You’ll want to take note of and mark locations with deep drop-offs and shallow flats, as well as points, peninsulas, bays, and backwaters. All of these spots have the potential to hold different species of fish and are great areas to target when you’re hunting for a hodgepodge of gamefish.

When setting up smaller fish like panfish, as well as the larger predators that prey on them, look for long shallow flats in three to seven feet of water. These spots tend to have a lot of structure, like weed beds, rock piles, and muddy bottoms, which will hold panfish like bluegill and perch. Try to target flats that are immediately adjacent to deeper water, between 10 and 20 feet, where there are both gradual slopes and distinct drop-offs. These spots are perfect to set up on for smaller panfish, which concentrate in the shallows, as well as larger, predatory species like pike, walleye, and even bass, which will move in and out of the deeper water to hunt them.

If you’re fishing on a deeper, oligotrophic lake where fish like white perch, lake trout, and burbot are likely to feed in deeper water, you want to concentrate your fishing around extreme drop-offs. Look for long, rocky points off of islands and peninsulas that extend out into deeper water or sandy flats along beaches and the inside bends of bays where there’s a distinct and abrupt drop-off into 25 feet of water or more. These are great spots to pick off large predatory fish cruising along the edges of the drop-off, as well as schools of suspended gamefish on the hunt for roving bait.

Jigging with Tip-Ups

The best way to target multiple species of fish through the ice is by both jigging and fishing with tip-ups simultaneously. This combination of your jigs creating action and movement in one area of the water and your tip-ups baited with live, wriggling bait in another allows you to cover all your bases. It’s important to remember that when targeting multiple species, you don’t want to put all your eggs in one basket by jigging and fishing tip-ups in the same area. To have success with multiple species, you’ve got to spread out.

When fishing in shallow water from five to 15 feet, you’re best bet is to jig in the shallower water and set up your tip-ups along drop-offs. Concentrate on fishing in areas where the deeper water is within easy walking or running distance from shallow weed beds and other structure that are most likely to hold fish.

Set up your tip-ups first in the deeper spots baited with larger baits like shiners for fish like walleye, bass, or pickerel, or even with big suckers if you’re hunting for pike and muskie and spread them out along the edge of the deeper water. Then, move back into shallow water to jig with smaller baits. It’s usually a good idea in these situations to drill a range of holes that are fairly close to where you’ve placed at least some of your tip-ups. If there’s a good school of panfish in these spots, the activity of jigging and catching them can actually cause larger predatory fish to come over and investigate, where they’ll hopefully find your tip-up ready and waiting.

In deeper water spots of 20 feet or more you’ll often want to do the opposite. Set up your tip-ups in shallower water with smaller baits, grouping your spread right along the edge and over the edge of distinct drop-offs. Then drill a series of holes in deeper water outside of the tip-up spread and start to systematically jig each one with larger baits and lures.

Bait and Switch

If you’re not fishing with tip-ups or are extremely limited on the number of lines that you can use, another good way to target multiple species of fish is to switch up baits on a jigging rod. While this method requires a lot of hole drilling and mobility, it can be an incredibly effective way to catch a multitude of fish species on the same trip. However, before you even step onto the ice to fish this way, you want to make sure you’re rigged up right.

You can’t catch a big pike or a monster lake trout on the same line and rod you would use for panfish and perch, so you’re going to want to jig for multiple species with a set-up designed for utility. Use a short, medium-action jigging rod that will have the capability of handling a big fish but is still sensitive enough to detect the subtle strikes of panfish and then rig it with 10- to 15-pound braided fishing line.

Because you’re going to be switching between smaller and larger fish, you’ll also want to get two spools of lighter and heavier monofilament line so you can switch leaders accordingly. Use a barrel swivel to make the swap outs faster and easier, and add a two- to three-foot length of either 4- to 6-pound monofilament line when jigging for panfish, bass, and walleye and heavier 10- to 15-pound mono when jigging for larger fish like pike and lake trout.

To start your day of jigging in multiple spots, you’re going to want to drill a series of holes in deeper water along the edges of drop-offs. As larger, more predatory fish tend to feed in the earlier and later parts of the day, these areas should be your first and last stop and should be jigged with larger lures and heavier leaders.

In the afternoon, when panfish and other smaller fish are more active, you’re going to want to drill a series of holes in shallower water that can be fished with smaller baits and lures and lighter leaders. Alternate fishing in the two areas with different set-ups, spending more time in the spots that are more productive, and you’re sure to end up with a smattering of different fish species at the end of your line.

The Mixed Bag

One of the best things about ice fishing is the mystery. Even with strategic planning, the hidden world of water beneath the ice can and will yield certain surprises. The random walleye in a school of perch or the giant pike that inhales your trout jig are all part of the ice fishing game that adds a bonus level of excitement to your days on the hardwater.

Yet, when you can go out and purposely solve that mystery by making catching multiple species a goal, you can allow the variety of fantastic species swimming below your feet to spice up every day on the ice.